Alon Efrat

Alon Efrat is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Arizona, College of Engineering. He has been an active researcher and educator, contributing significantly to computational geometry, algorithms, sensor networks, and multimedia systems.

Research Interests: His work spans computational geometry, geometric algorithms, sensor and wireless networks, UAV motion planning, video browsing systems, and location-based services. He has developed algorithms for network resilience, data mules, and secure communication using jamming. His interdisciplinary research includes applications in healthcare, pandemic modeling, and educational technology.

Scientific Contributions:

• NSF CAREER Award recipient (2004)
• Editorial board member for International Journal of Computational Geometry & Applications (IJCGA) and Journal of Discrete Algorithms (JDA)
• Program committee member for major conferences including SoCG, INFOCOM, FOCS, and ACM GIS
• Active participant in organizing workshops such as ALGOSENSORS and SoCG

Advising and Grants:

• Advises graduate students in algorithms and systems, including Jesus Arango, Swaminathan Sankararaman, and Qiyam Tung
• Research funded by NSF (CAREER, CCF, CNS), ACIST, and Honda Research Lab
• Co-PI on multiple interdisciplinary projects involving network security, mobile health, and UAVs

Recent Research Trends: His recent publications show a strong focus on uncertainty in data (nearest-neighbor search under uncertainty), geometric optimization for security (jamming, network resilience), and applications of computational geometry to real-world problems such as pandemic modeling, healthcare in remote regions, and terrain sweeping with UAVs. The work blends theoretical depth with practical implementation, often involving interdisciplinary collaboration.

Labs and Projects:

• Lead of the SLIC video browsing system
• Involved in UAV-based terrain surveillance and data mule networks
• Collaborates with teams in Brazil (Codpon Project) and on Amazon-region healthcare